Kelly Cline Quiltinghttp://www.kellyclinequilting.com
Mon, 29 Jan 2018 00:45:57 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.9.493127157“Sweet Memories” Vintage Pillow Coverhttp://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2018/01/sweet-memories-vintage-pillow-cover/
http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2018/01/sweet-memories-vintage-pillow-cover/#commentsFri, 26 Jan 2018 21:13:16 +0000http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/?p=1689I love to find these beautiful, vintage pillow covers. They tend to be about 100 years old and created in the early 1900’s during an era called, Society Silk. Many of these use silk floss and came in a kit with a pre-tinted linen, just as our kits come today. What makes these very special to me are the quirky sayings and silk threads that were used. I quilt these on a Handi Quilter Fusion, longarm.

This the the original cover. I removed the backing, which was a depression era, green linen.

I’m pretty sure the maker would be mortified if she knew she missed a spot. The magenta stitch is hers, the satin stitching would have gone over it to give some padding.

When placing designs on cloth, I use a blue, water soluble pen. I only make registration marks and try to do the smallest bit of them. A great tip for removing the blue marks, mix 1 heaping teaspoon of baking soda to one cup of water. Put in a spray bottle and marks disappear, forever! At least I’ve had no reappearing marks since I’ve used this method!

I usually don’t have a big plan for these pieces until I begin them. I let them ‘talk’ to me while I stitch and they usually SCREAM at some point!

I use my rulers for all straight lines. The longer one is great for ditch stitching and long runs and then the smaller, Palm ruler, is super for short lengths.

Viola’! Another great finish! I adore these pieces and hope you’ve enjoyed the beauty and re-purpose also!

]]>http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2018/01/sweet-memories-vintage-pillow-cover/feed/381689Make a Name or Letter Pillow on the Long Armhttp://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2018/01/make-a-name-or-letter-pillow-on-the-long-arm/
http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2018/01/make-a-name-or-letter-pillow-on-the-long-arm/#commentsThu, 11 Jan 2018 17:27:36 +0000http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/?p=1659I often scroll through Pinterest in the evenings, admiring quilts, embroideries and crafts in general. I came across some ‘name’ pillows and decided that’s exactly what my granddaughter needed for her new bed. I don’t know about you, but when I see something I like or get a new idea, I MUST make it immediately! I love to make a pillow directly on my long arm, so this photo heavy post will cater to the longarmmer, however, you can sure do this on your regular sewing machine. The first thing I did was free hand draw the letters onto freezer paper. With the shiny side down, I ironed the letters onto the fabric.

Next, I added a layer of fusible interfacing to the back of the fabric, then I cut everything at the same time. This way, I can iron my letters to the background fabric and I’m ready for handstitching the edges.

I spent a few evenings, using a buttonhole stitch and pearl cotton to embroider the letters. I love the background fabric! A hand dyed piece I found somewhere on my travels.

The background piece is about 20″ x 30″. I basted around the perimeter of the piece so I have a nice frame and area to do the quilting. I used one layer of Hobbs 80/20 and Glide 40 wt. thread.

I use my notched rulers to outline around the applique before I set off on the free motion quilting. I had a blast doing a whimsical, free flowing design.

Yes! I quilt every tiny space, yikes!

You can see I added a stitch line at the halfway mark. This way I will be able to easily add the fringe and have a cut line to split the pillow.

Can you believe I found this perfectly matching fringe at my local Hobby Lobby! I couldn’t believe the colors were so perfect and who doesn’t love fun fringe!

I used the horizontal channel locks on my long arm to stitch down the fringe. Of course, this could all be done on your regular sewing machine, but I try to do everything I possibly can on the long arm so that when I take it off, it’s just assembly!

Now that the fringe is all stitched, I’m ready to take it off the frame and give it the old, ‘right sides together’!

You can see how easily it split apart.

Right sides together now and I’ll take it over to my sewing machine. I will tell you, it takes a bit of thought. I kept repeating to myself, ‘right sides together, inside out’, things like that.

As I worked on this pillow I thought, how much fun would Junie have if she had a treasure pocket! Juniper is a treasure LOVER and a pretty good treasure hunter. SOOO, I created an envelope with a secret pocket underneath. Hopefully you can follow my photos to see what happened!

I stitched on ready made patches for some fun!

The most special part is this secret pocket under the false envelope that ONLY Juniper will know about!

There you have it! What a fun project that can be completed pretty quickly. I think any child would love this. I hope you’ll give it a try!

]]>http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2018/01/make-a-name-or-letter-pillow-on-the-long-arm/feed/141659Got Scraps? Make Placemats!http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2018/01/got-scraps-make-placemats/
http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2018/01/got-scraps-make-placemats/#commentsWed, 03 Jan 2018 12:45:16 +0000http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/?p=1635What to do with all those scraps? I’ve got loads of fabric scraps and even more embroidered linens that I’ve collected. I will admit it’s hard to cut into perfectly fine handwork, but much of it has been used and tattered over the years. I pulled out a few old dish towels that had seen better days, cut out the handwork, and went to town creating some new placemats. I used reproduction print scraps to give these an authentic era feel, but you can use anything you have laying around. They sew up fast and are super cute when finished.

Really, not much life left in the dish towel! I cut out the corner for a great save.

Another great piece of handwork. I did add a piece of fusible interfacing to the back of each towel for stability.

I had to have this one! An embroidered “K’ on a printed dishtowel.

At this point, I dumped out my scraps and began to randomly stitch them together, creating strips that could easily be sewn to the embroidered pieces.

Once I had these pieced, I trimmed them to the same size, about 14″ x 17″.

I collect old tablecloths to use as backings on many of my quilts. I thought it might be appropriate to use this vintage tablecloth as the backing for the placemats, staying within the kitchen theme.

I used a simple crosshatch design on each placemat and was able to place them side by side on my longarm machine.

I cut them apart, sewed on the binding, and viola!!! A great way to re-purpose handwork. I used a double batting layer of Hobbs 80/20 and Glide 40 wt thread. I hope you’ll give these a try, they are quick and fun! Happy New Year everyone!

]]>http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2018/01/got-scraps-make-placemats/feed/261635A Quilted HAPPY BIRTHDAYhttp://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/12/a-quilted-happy-birthday/
http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/12/a-quilted-happy-birthday/#commentsTue, 26 Dec 2017 19:52:25 +0000http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/?p=1633I came across a vintage hankie this summer that I knew I needed to quilt! Feel free to use this image if you’d like to wish a quilter Happy Birthday. It seems appropriate!

]]>http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/12/a-quilted-happy-birthday/feed/41633Machine Quilt a Vintage/Antique Top on the Long Armhttp://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/10/machine-quilt-a-vintageantique-top-on-the-long-arm/
http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/10/machine-quilt-a-vintageantique-top-on-the-long-arm/#commentsFri, 06 Oct 2017 11:55:14 +0000http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/?p=1597I adore old quilt tops. Antique, vintage, ancient, or old, whatever you like to call them! They are cool! A lot of the attraction for me is the fabrics from the early 1900’s. I can spend hours just looking over ever part of an old quilt. The technique also attracts me. Simply cut with scissors, most likely patterned around a piece of cardboard, then often hand stitched piece by tiny piece to create a WHOLE quilt! I’m astounded by it all!

I stopped at an antique store, Fleas An Tiques, in Independence, KS, last week and found this treasure. It was half price! I absolutely had to have it for $12.50! I’m going to take you through the process from found treasure to a usable quilt. I always feel the maker is smiling down on me when the quilt is finished!

I knew right away from the musty smell that it would need a bath! Most of these old tops I can’t even touch or work on the machine until I have soaked them overnight. I have a terrible mold allergy! I first soaked this one in Retro Clean, which can be found on Amazon or sometimes in quilt or antique shops. It will take out age stains, yellowing, and give the fabrics a general brightening. You notice I said SOAK, not wash! Never agitate a top that hasn’t been quilted, you will have massive amount of fraying and you take the chance that the whole top will fall apart.

Retro Clean will only take out stains, not the mold and mildew. This one had a second day soak in an ammonia water bath. I mix 1 part ammonia to 5 parts water. Except for bleach (which you wouldn’t want to use), ammonia is the only thing I know of to actually remove mold spores. I do this soak for another 24 hours at least. There have been times I’ve had to do a 2 or 3 day ammonia soak because a top is so mildewed. My nose never lies!

After a multiple rinse, I gently squish out all the water I can, then take it to the grass. Yes, smack dab on top of the grass! The ozone rays of the sun and the chlorophyll in the grass will brighten and whiten a fabric. I give that about a day in the sunshine.

This top is a mix of feedsacks, shirt cottons, and just your average bits of clothing. You can almost see the worn blouses, pants, baby blankets, and family wardrobes that are mixed together in a quilt like this. That’s the fun! I swear I even see the fabric from my grandpa’s boxer shorts! Can you imagine not having the fabric resources that we have now? This reminds me that life was certainly different 100 years ago! Women were frugal and used every bit of what they already had. I’m sure my closet alone could make a dozen quilts!

You can see from the back that someone worked diligently on the piecing. Would we even begin to piece a quilt top by hand? I find hand stitching to be mesmerizing and intriguing. Hand piecing does cause a few issues in modern day machine quilting, but nothing that can’t be worked out!

I do give these tops as good a press as possible, always from the top. There really is no way to press as we do nowadays, seams pressed a certain direction. I try to get them as flat as possible, always using a good spray starch.

There are also the random holes. Since these are not collectible, heirloom quilt tops, I am usually looking for a quick fix. I use a piece of fusible interfacing and any piece of cotton to make a patch on the underside.

Once I’ve soaked, shined, fixed and pressed, it’s finally time for the quilting. Let’s go!

I load a backing on my longarm, a Handi Quilter Fusion with Pro-Stitcher computer. On these particularly wavy tops, I usually choose a 100% polyester batting, this one is Hobbs brand. The fluff of the polyester tends to fill in the excess fabric, eliminating any stitched in wrinkles.

The next important tool is my Glide foot by Handi Quilter! I couldn’t quilt so many of the things I quilt if I didn’t have this foot! It’s magic for me! On these lumpy, bumpy, uneven tops, this foot glides over everything. It’s easy on, easy off with a quick flip of my allen wrench. I can pop my regular hopping foot on at any time.

I start by basting a horizontal line across the top of the quilt using the channel locks on my machine. This locks the machine in a horizontal position. I manipulate the top with one hand while moving the machine with the other.

After I have a line across the top, then I do a vertical line down both sides. Once again, I use the option on my machine called a vertical lock. I manipulate the fabric as much as possible to the vertical line. Both of these locks will square the quilt as much as possible while it’s on the frame.

I keep a spray bottle of water at my side, using it to spray the top, keeping it pliable and easily manipulated.

Another tip, when choosing a design for these busy tops, choose an all over design. Custom quilting on anything like this is really not even possible and would be lost. I look for a dense and flowing design, something that will secure a lot of seams and give the quilt strength. On these beauties, I’m looking for some great texture. I chose a digital design by Susan Mallett, called “Paisley”.

While I’m working each row, I often run into excess fabric that can actually be flattened with a good can of spray starch and a steam iron. You can see a quick video here on how I do that, but simply, spray your starch over the fabric, then run a steam iron (mine is a cordless Panasonic) over the area. You will see almost an immediate tightening of the fabrics. FYI, this only works on cottons.

The last row definitely tells the true shape of the quilt. Sometimes, you can try as hard as you might, but you can’t make a wonky quilt, square. I get very close though

I did one more soak in ammonia water after the quilting. I realized when I started to put on the binding that I had used an estate sale fabric for the backing, which meant mold and mildew. I couldn’t work with it again until I soaked that fabric! Dang!!

Finally, I stitched on the binding. I usually don’t tell anyone this, but binding may be my favorite part of the quilt. Honestly, I love to hand stitch.

I hope you were inspired by this post to finish an old quilt. If everyone reading this did just one, think how many quilts we would have!!! Have a wonderful day!

]]>http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/10/machine-quilt-a-vintageantique-top-on-the-long-arm/feed/451597How To Make a Pillow From Vintage Linenshttp://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/10/how-to-make-a-pillow-from-vintage-linens/
http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/10/how-to-make-a-pillow-from-vintage-linens/#commentsSun, 01 Oct 2017 13:54:06 +0000http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/?p=1569I LOVE parts and pieces of vintage linens! Most of us have doilies, embroideries, old quilt parts and various linens from our mothers, grandmothers, aunts and maybe just found treasures from long ago. I’ll take you on a “how to” journey so that you might be able to bring those pieces out of their drawers and make them into something usable and memorable. Let’s go!

This particular piece began with an unfinished block of applique. I was given a bag of treasures from a friend, who felt that I would be the best ‘keeper’ of her grandmothers’ linens. I would guess these fabrics to be from the 1930’s or 40’s. Baskets with flowers have long been a popular pattern for quilters. When I find a one block wonder, it makes me think the maker made one and then said, “boy I’ll never do that again!” LOL!!

This block is about 20″ square. It was relatively clean so there was no need to give it a bath. If a piece has stains, I like to give it a soak in Retro Clean. You can see from my work table that I am NOT a tidy girl. I usually have multiple projects going at the same time! Plus, I like to pull out everything that might work with a piece.

The first thing I knew for sure, was that I wanted to use a bag of reproduction fabrics I had picked up at a garage sale. Yes, 5o cents for all this!!

I always like to share the back of a piece because you see the real work of the original maker.

I started by cutting 4 strips that are 1 1/2″ wide. I wanted a simple border using colors from the appliqued flowers. These are not the same fabrics, but they blend nicely.

I also wanted to bring in some of the hundreds of doilies I own. Who has doilies?? I’m guessing LOTS of you! Seems our ancestors loved to crochet, tat, and do all sorts of lace work. I will be the first to admit that I will never use them all in my lifetime, but I do admire them and the hours of work that someone put into making them!

I put them around the perimeter of the block and cut them, yes, I cut them. Trust me, it’s OK! Lightening will not strike you

I sprayed each doily with some 505 temporary baste spray. This way they would stay where I placed them until I could get them sewn onto the block.

With right sides together, I stitched the border to the block, catching in the doilies.

Working around the piece, I stitched each strip to make a frame around the block and envelope the doilies.

I put a total of three small borders to frame this piece. I ditch stitched them on my domestic machine and then put the piece on my longarm to do the quilting. Any of this work can be done on a domestic or longarm machine, but I wanted to try out my new, notched rulers, so I worked on the longarm to finish this piece. These rulers are ONLY for use on the longarm because the hopping foot nestles in the notch of the ruler and gives complete control around the applique shapes.

Before I start to free motion quilt anything, I stabilize the entire piece by outlining each and every applique and embroidered line. This gives definition to the block. Now I’m ready for the fun, quilting!

This photo shows the definition created when the outlining is finished. While I outlined, I also went into a few of the flower centers and leaves. I always to try to work in an area while I’m there, that way there are less starts and stops and I am able to do a continuous stitch line.

Here are a few technical details of this piece. I quilt on a Handi Quilter Fusion, longarm machine. I used a layer of Hobbs Heirloom 80/20 batting and my thread is Glide, 60 wt, color Cream, by Fil-Tec.

At this point, I changed to the Glide foot. This may be my most used tool! It glides over crochet, applique, anything that is not flat on the surface. A few other machine brands have their version of this foot. Check with your dealer to see if your machine has one! Even on my Bernina, I have a disc type foot that I think they call an echo foot. This can be used with great ease over doilies and embroideries.

I used my favorite pebble, spiral mix and when the entire piece was finished, I added a few pearls and glass beads to pull down the trim edges. I rarely stitch down an edge as I like to save that for embellishing.

When I make the back of a pillow, I also use batting to give the finished pillow a sturdy structure.

I put together a few pieces of fabric, sandwiched with batting and a piece of muslin for the backing, then quilted on my domestic machine with a random wave. I think it makes a great texture and is super simple!

I’ve made an envelope pillow with this one. If you’ve not seen that done, check YouTube for a tutorial. They are super easy and go together almost quicker than a regular pillow. Put the right sides together and then stitch around the perimeter.

Turn inside out and there you have it! A usable, beautiful, heirloom pillow, with possibly a lot of sentimental value if you’ve used your family treasures!

I hope this inspires you to pull some things out of your drawers and closets and create something to use from your parts and pieces of vintage linens. There is a challenge and a thrill that come from these creations. More than anything else, HAVE FUN!

]]>http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/10/how-to-make-a-pillow-from-vintage-linens/feed/281569NEW RULERS!http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/09/new-rulers/
http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/09/new-rulers/#respondSun, 03 Sep 2017 02:35:38 +0000http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/?p=1562I’m so excited to share my two new rulers! You can watch the video to see how I use them. They can be ordered on the tab, Notch Rulers. I am SUPER excited with the control and accuracy I can achieve with them. I hope you’ll give them a try!

]]>http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/09/new-rulers/feed/01562“The Difference Between Things”, by Victoria Findlay Wolfehttp://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/08/the-difference-between-things-by-victoria-findlay-wolfe/
http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/08/the-difference-between-things-by-victoria-findlay-wolfe/#commentsFri, 11 Aug 2017 21:05:06 +0000http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/?p=1518I LOVE this quilt by Victoria Findlay Wolfe! It is currently being exhibited at the Festival of Quilts in the U.K. The exhibit is called, “Victoria Findlay Wolfe:Traditions Made Modern”. I’m so excited for Victoria and the adventures she is having. How cool to have an entire exhibit with your name on it!!! You go girl!!

I quilted this quilt for her last summer and had forgotten about it until it showed up in my Facebook feed this morning! What a surprise! It’s hanging in Birmingham, UK, August 10-13. I hope some of you will be visiting what looks to be a fabulous show!

Victoria and I met a few years ago when she visited my quilt guild in Lawrence, KS, and also did a workshop. I typically sew the way she does, improvisational and never follow a pattern! I loved her workshop and always try to get in ’15 minutes of play’ when I’m home and near my machine.

She had asked me to quilt this quilt in the spirit of artist, Matisse. I had SO much fun with each area, using bits and pieces from his artwork.

It’s such an interesting quilt and you’ll need to see it close up to really understand the Matisse influence.

There was an incredible amount of ruler work on this one, but then again, I LOVE ruler work, so WIN WIN!!

I hope you will get to see this in person one day. It’s just fun! Have a lovely weekend folks, especially those of you attending the Festival of Quilts.

]]>http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/08/the-difference-between-things-by-victoria-findlay-wolfe/feed/51518“Quilting Vintage Linens” is on YouTube!http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/07/quilting-vintage-linens-is-on-youtube/
http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/07/quilting-vintage-linens-is-on-youtube/#commentsFri, 14 Jul 2017 23:06:55 +0000http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/?p=1509Just what you’ve asked for and so many have waited for! Finally, a video that shows you how I approach quilting vintage linens on the longarm. Thanks to Handi Quilter, who recently filmed a 45 minute segment on this process. I hope you enjoy the episode and don’t hesitate to ask questions. If you are interested in my rulers or lectures/workshops, find those tabs for more information. Thanks for visiting!

]]>http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/07/quilting-vintage-linens-is-on-youtube/feed/61509Make a Tote Bag with Vintage Doilieshttp://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/07/make-a-tote-bag-with-vintage-doilies/
http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/2017/07/make-a-tote-bag-with-vintage-doilies/#commentsMon, 03 Jul 2017 15:51:07 +0000http://www.kellyclinequilting.com/?p=1494While teaching and traveling in Australia this last February, I was given quite a few lovely pieces of handwork and Aussie fabrics. I have them all hanging in my studio and a few weeks ago I was inspired to create something special with two of the pieces.

On my longarm I have a backing, then Hobbs 80/20 batting, then the super cute, Koala background fabric. At this point, I ran an edge to edge design over the background fabric, THEN, laid the two doilies on top of the fabric.

Let’s start at the beginning and I’ll take you through the process. Under each linen I added a single layer of Hobbs 80/20 batting to give an extra loft. It also hides the print that is under the doily. I cut the batting larger than the doily and trim it away after I have quilted the linen.

I stabilize the piece by “ditch” stitching around the inside edge of the crocheted trim. I leave that scant 1/8″ so that I can trim away the batting later. You’ll see what happens when I finish quilting. I quilt on a Handi Quilter Fusion and here I am using the “Glide” foot. It is almost a necessity when stitching lace and embroideries. You can see it glides right over all the thickness.

At this point I will stitch around ALL the embroidery. I never stitch over the handwork, but around everything! It gives the piece great definition and pops it right out of the linen. Deciding on the design usually comes as I am outlining all of the embroidery. You can see the spine I have created for the eventual feathers. I like to use a blue, water soluble pen for marking. (TIP: to remove blue marks completely and seemingly forever, mix 1 t baking soda to 1 cup of water, place in a spray bottle. This mix must be fresh each day it is used.)

I trimmed the batting to the inside edge of the trim crochet, using a curved pair tiny, sharp scissors. My favorites are a simple pair of cuticle scissors!

After the batting is trimmed, I lay down the crochet and stitch the outside edge to cover any of the batting that might have not been precisely trimmed. It always covers that raw edge of batting.

You can see here how much stitching I put into the embroidery.

The full piece was taken off the frame and split in half, therefore, creating both sides for the tote bag. I made both sides a bit different. I also TEA stained the pieces once I had the quilting done to make the fabric match the age of the linen. This really made the whole thing come together!

Next, I sewed the halves together and also made a lining WITH a pocket for the inside.

Handles were added, also tea stained.

And there you have it! A new tote bag made by repurposing an antique linen. It’s also a fabulous reminder of the great friends I made in Australia! (Special thanks to Lynne for the handwork and Caroline for the fabric!)

I hope this post helped to see the process for some of the bits of handwork we all have hiding in our drawers. Try it, you’ll become a lover of vintage repurposing!